Aloha
by Bookworm Gal
Summary: All the cousins have homes, Hamsterviel is in prison, and things are going well for the genetic experiment and the little girl who considers him ohana. But things rarely stay simple for long. News of the human child who commands the loyalty of the deadly experiments and broke through their programming has spread further than expected. And someone wants to make use of Lilo's gifts.
1. A Typical Morning for the Ohana

**Why? I really don't need to start anymore stories. I really don't. I don't even know how often I'll be able to update this thing. It is beyond insane to be doing this. But I absolutely **_**love**_** this movie and I liked most of the sequels and television series. Not the anime since I haven't really watched it and I am heartbroken about the idea of breaking up the pair like that, but at least they were apparently nice enough to have a reunion between our Hawaiian girl and genetic experiment in one episode. Anyway, I'm getting off track.**

**I'm a fan of Disney, so it really was only a matter of time before another of the fandoms pulled me in. And this one really does have so much potential. You can do so much with "Lilo and Stitch" honestly when you think of all the elements provided. You have Tantalog, the language that Stitch and his cousins use in the show with plenty of examples of various phrases and words that can be translated. You have over six hundred experiments running around the island, with "Leroy and Stitch" providing the names for all of them if you look during the credits. You have untold numbers of alien species in the United Galactic Federation, along with however many **_**aren't**_** part of the group. You have a little girl as Earth's representative in the Federation, which you know would be a little concerning for the various country leaders on the planet. You could do insane amounts of awesome stuff with all of this. **

**But the focus of the show was always Lilo and Stitch (hence the name of the show). And with good reason. If you actually think about them the right way, the two of them are certainly intriguing. And not just because one is practically an unstoppable force.**

**Stitch's mind can be broken down into three distinct aspects. One, he's intelligent. **_**Very**_** intelligent. In the words of his creator, he can think faster than supercomputer. We know he can drive just about anything (and hotwire it). He can make an improvised explosive out of Scrump with objects in the Pelekai household. He can make a plan of escape or how to perform a capture on the fly. He might not be Jumba when it comes to pure brainpower, but he's a lot smarter than the average guy on the street. Two, his only instinct is to destroy everything he touches. Even if he turns good, those instincts have been shown to remain with him. Basically, anything he encounters is a target to be ripped, shredded, crushed, broken, exploded, or simply smashed into pieces. And because he's incredibly smart, he'll know exactly how to destroy whatever he's facing. Even if it is something like Jumba's computer, the couch in the living room, or the arm of a certain little Hawaiian girl that is giving him a hug. Just because he decided not to be a living weapon doesn't mean he forgot all his instincts. He just chooses not to act on them all the time. Three, he's actually fairly young chronologically and emotionally. Judging by what was shown in "Lilo and Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch" and from Jumba's statements about him lacking any "memories to visit in the middle of the night" in the original movie, he wasn't very old at all by the beginning of the first film. His reactions and behavior is rather similar to a little kid at times, especially his emotional responses. And for all his intelligence, he's inexperienced and his world view is being formed mostly by what Lilo shares with him. She's the one who helped introduce him to the idea of empathy, morality, ohana, and gave him a framework to base his life on other than just his instincts. So she's fulfilled the role of not just his best friend. She's almost like his mother in an abstract way.**

**And while Lilo might be human, she can still be just as impressive as Stitch in her own way. She was about five or six when she lost her parents and Nani was forced to fulfill that new role. Even at that point, she's shown to be an odd and yet intelligent child (she could use the word "abomination" correctly and seems to read some rather atypical material). Over the next three years, she not only manages to turn a powerful and dangerous living weapon away from his original programming to the point where he's loyal to her to a fault, but she also converts over six hundred different experiments to similarly benevolent roles on the island of Kauai and even has the ability to contact one of the cousins that now serves with the Captain of the Galactic Armada (Rueben and Gantu respectively). Let that sink in for a moment. A nine year old girl essentially has an army of genetic experimental weapons that she can easily summon up in an emergency along with her loyal ultimate living weapon that lives with her and she is on a first name basis with the commander of **_**another**_** army, this one with space ships. She is also the ambassador for Earth, which in theory means that she has a voice in regards to issues brought up before the council. That's ignoring the friends she's made due to the crossover episodes (such as Kim Possible, the girl who can do anything, and Jake Long, the American Dragon). She might not be as physically dangerous as her "dog," but Lilo has plenty of powerful connections due to her ability to gain ohana wherever she goes and turn evil beings into good without even trying.**

**So, after this insanely long intro, here are the last few pieces of info. I don't own most of these characters. I wish I did, though. Anything I did create, I'll point them out. Any characters, elements, or ideas that you like, you're welcome to borrow them. Just ask me first. I am also not going to try incorporating the "Stitch" anime series from Japan. I **_**will**_** be using the four movies and television series that take place in Hawaii. So, please sit and enjoy my insane journey into yet another fandom.**

Aloha

Even before he opened his eyes, he knew she was already out of their shared room. His sharp ears could no longer hear her breathing and her heart-beating from her bed and even if her scent clung to practically every inch of the rooftop dome, his equally sharp nose could tell it was not quite strong enough for her to be present. While he preferred to keep her within easy-to-protect distance, especially during that time when Gantu could still be considered an enemy, he didn't feel too concerned at the moment. There were currently over six hundred formerly-evil experiments, his "cousins," living on the island who would be happy to step in to help her if she was in trouble and they didn't even have any real enemies at the moment who were free to hurt her. They were either converted to good or were in prison. Not to mention she was currently in the kitchen trying to convince Pleakley that the extremely sugar-filled cereal was a reasonable breakfast choice and Nani was being ridiculous about not having it every morning. Keeping track of her was thankfully easy to accomplish with sensitive enough ears. He could probably locate her in a pitch-black cave using only his hearing to navigate.

Deciding it was probably time to go down and join the rest of the ohana, he opened his eyes and slipped off his bunk. Anyone who lived off the island would have stared at his appearance, absolutely certain that no Earth creature could ever look this… alien. Near three feet six inches tall on his hind legs and with enormous ears that would make a bat proud, he was covered in blue fur that would be impossible to ignore. Sharp claws on his hands, a large and keen nose, black eyes, and teeth that reminded some beach goers of a shark, he tended to draw stares and unnerve those not used to his presence. Somehow, most humans were willing to uncertainly accept the identity of his species as a "dog." Of course, his natural shape would ruin even that uneasy acceptance since no canine on Earth can sprout an extra set of limbs, antennas, and spikes along their back on cue. But that was the key detail. Even though he might be on Earth now and even spent most of his life here so far, he wasn't _from_ the planet.

He was Experiment 626. Created by the evil genius, Dr. Jumba Jookiba, as his ultimate masterpiece and the culmination of his work on the previous experiments, he was designed and built as the ultimate living weapon to destroy. The sheer attention to detail was rather impressive and he'd read enough of the doctor's files to be very familiar with them.

Everything about him was intended to make him the most powerful tool for utter destruction possible. His bones contained a mixture of titanium and iron rather than merely calcium and phosphate compounds to ensure they could withstand the impact and forces such a creature would encounter and they were essentially unbreakable while his joints were flexible enough to never hinder his movement even when he rolled into a ball. His individual muscle cells contained compressed myofibril to increase the speed of muscle contraction along with simply being made of sterner material than what is generally found in living creatures. They were so efficient that he could lift three thousand times his body weight. His skin and fur contained several durable polymers that left him fireproof and bulletproof while still remaining fluffy. His claws could rip through most common metals and leave slashes across the same clear materials used to craft the windows of spaceships or containment units that most would call impervious to damage. His teeth and jaws were equally powerful, tearing and crushing most materials including stone, wood, plastic, glass, and weaker metals.

In his natural form, he possessed a second set of arms of equal strength and dexterity as his first set, but with the unique features to his anatomy to allow their presence to be used as a surprise during an attack. Technically, he had two sets of shoulders: one below his neck and another pseudo-shoulder in his mid body. When the extra arms retracted, two sets of muscles alternated tensing and releasing to enable the lower arms to slide along the groove into a resting position inside. Thus, his second set of arms could be hidden inside his body so that an opponent would remain ignorant of their presence until it was too late. The spikes along his back were equally retractable, making it even more difficult to attack from behind.

His senses were extremely acute so that nothing in his environment would escape his notice. His ears could detect sounds in a rather impressive range of frequencies and volumes even at a distance to the point where it could practically serve as sonar. His sense of smell would allow him to trace certain scents back to their source up to ten miles away in the right circumstances. His eyes were among the most versatile however. He could see in the dark, his large eyes able to make use of even the faintest traces of light to navigate his surroundings. Along with the normal visible spectrum, he could see both ultraviolet and infrared light. Even more useful was that he could easily filter through these different wavelengths so he could focus on the more important details without distractions. One of his less commonly-used senses was connected to his retractable antennas. The allowed him to detect, transmit, and receive various signals such as radar, radio, and microwave energy as a discrete method of communication and jamming other signals, which also enabled him to act as a audio amplifier for other sources of information such as a vinyl records. Unfortunately, the preferred frequency for his antennas was 2.5GHz, coincidentally the same as a microwave oven. This meant that if he happened to have his antennas out at the same time someone was using the device nearby, his senses tended to be flooded with an extremely infuriating amount of feedback.

But the key aspect to making the perfect living weapon was the mind. In the words of his creator, he could think faster than a supercomputer. His mind was a detailed information repository, though not quite as extensive as Jumba's. He could calculate and recognize the most efficient way to destroy a target, operate and hotwire nearly any vehicle he might lay his hands on, program and hack any computer, and solve any problem that might try to hinder his efforts. He could understand and speak a number of different languages and sub-dialects, though he wasn't quite as talented as his cousin Reuben. His mind was wired specifically for Tantalog though and he tended to use that language as a default. His range of languages wasn't too surprising since most of the species who took part in the United Galactic Federation spoke multiple languages for practicality's sake and Tantalog was a popular secondary one for many populations due to its history as a native tongue for a supremely advance yet now-extinct civilization and was still in use for a few other scattered planets. According to the private files he wasn't supposed to hack into about his creator's past, Jumba even grew up in an area of Kweltikwan that spoke it fluently and didn't learn the more wide-spread Standard until he was older and about to start Evil Genius University. It only made sense that he would use his native language as the default choice for his experiments. His learning curve was intense, allowing him to gain any knowledge he didn't possess swiftly. Of course, there's a difference between knowing something because you are given the information and using it properly in reality, but that could be dealt with by gaining experience and his detailed memory of his life assisted in maintaining the lessons learned by practice.

And all of his physical and mental capabilities were crafted in order to make the best use of the sole instinct his creator gave him, the only purpose intended for the experiment. To destroy everything. Granted, there were a few specifics to help direct his efforts. He would be drawn to large cities, back up sewers, reverse street signs, and steal everyone's left shoe. But everything boiled down to destruction. Experiment 626 was intended to destroy whatever he touched and to be unstoppable, no more and no less.

Of course, not even the plans of an evil genius can go perfectly all the time. The United Galactic Federation showed up at the worst possible time, arresting the evil genius and trying to take the newly created experiment in as evidence. The first time they didn't even manage to get him very far before he slipped away since they didn't know what they were dealing with. The second time they did succeed in bringing him to Turo for Jumba's trial, destroying the scientist's hope of getting out of trouble due to lack of evidence. But the second escape allowed him to get even further away and find what he didn't even know he was missing.

He wasn't just Experiment 626 anymore, the weapon with the sole purpose of destruction and a monster accidentally unleashed upon the universe. His name was Stitch. He had something more than just his programming to guide him now. He possessed a home, an ohana, and somewhere he truly belonged. All Jumba's hard work to create the perfect force for evil was essentially tossed aside now that he knew what he wanted out of life. Oddly, the scientist didn't seem overly-upset by the supposed waste of his creation's potential, adding evidence to Stitch's theory that he was more fond of the _concept_ of evil and the possibilities it offered than he was of the realities of true evil. Regardless, he'd become far more than an experiment, a tool for destruction. He had his own identity and capability to choose whether or not to fulfill his original function. And he owed everything to the girl downstairs.

There was technically an elevator that connected the rooftop dome to the rest of the house installed by Jumba, but Stitch didn't bother using it half the time anyway. The blue-furred experiment simply climbed down the shaft, clinging to the surface without effort. There was a reason Pleakley tended to complain about having to clean footprints off the ceiling and walls.

While the rooftop dome might have a practical and plain style to it that was reminiscent of a spacecraft, the rest of the house felt cozy and warm. Not to say that the room he shared didn't have personal touches, such as her photographs, some books, the decorative lamp, and her doll, Scrump. It was just that the rest of the house seemed more complete. The furniture, the decorations, the colors, and the general atmosphere just seemed to make Stitch feel good. When he first arrived, he couldn't really identify the feeling and he'd been more concern with how much force it would take to break the items to fragments, but he now knew the place felt like ohana. It was home to a close-knit, albeit unusual ohana and he was part of it. The kitchen, the living room, and the rest of the house was a space for the entire family while the rooftop dome was just for the two of them. It only made sense that a space for the whole ohana would feel more home-like.

Three figures were currently in the kitchen. Nani, the dark-haired adult human woman of the family, was already gone to her job apparently. The fact she was already gone was further proof that he'd slept in that morning.

The first of the remaining trio was sitting at the table, drinking from an oversized mug while chuckling over some blueprints. Dressed in a colorful shirt, the purple-and-pink-skinned, four-eyed, nearly-bald Kweltikwan was probably one of the smartest individuals in the galaxy. After all, Dr. Jumba Jookiba did manage to create all the experiments currently living on the island, not to mention inventing time travel using a surfboard as the base. It was rather interesting that someone who still called himself an evil genius could be happy living on a relatively low-tech planet. But, like all the members of the family, he found that he truly belonged here. His so-called evilness wasn't quite as evident these days except for the occasional maniacal laugh or his attempts to make a new experiment.

The second was leafing through the local newspaper, dressed in an orange muumuu and cheerfully commenting on various aspects of the human culture that he found to be fascinating. Thin, greenish-yellow, one-eyed, tripedal, and in possession of two purple tongues and a single antenna on top of his head, the Plorgonarian was certainly content living on the planet due to considering himself an Earth expert. Of course, Agent Wendy Pleakley didn't arrive in Hawaii with the initial intention of remaining, but circumstances left him and Jumba as roommates and now Stitch doubted he would leave even when the option was offered. True, he did want to share his knowledge with the rest of the universe, but he'd already given up a position at Galactic Alliance Community College. Perhaps he would write a book about it someday. Judging by the reactions from the human members of the ohana to some of the things his "research" suggested about Earth, however, he was a little suspicious about how much Pleakley would say that would actually be correct.

The third member at the table, shoveling her cereal while studying the back of the box, was a human child with black hair and brown eyes. She looked like just another native of the island, though one most of the locals tended to consider eccentric. She was also one of the most important people in his life. Lilo was the one who gave him everything; she was the reason he was more than just a living weapon. Her explanation of ohana and the story of the Ugly Duckling that first night was the point where Stitch stopped seeing her as a useful shield to keep from being captured and as someone special that he couldn't even consider allowing to be harmed by anyone.

Of course, that made it all the worse when he started glitching sporadically after joining the ohana and accidentally scratched her. Stitch would've rather jumped in the ocean without a surfboard than hurt her. He didn't mean it and he couldn't help it. Everyone told him that repeatedly, including Lilo who also apologized repeatedly for not realizing something was wrong with him. Luckily, he didn't directly attack her apparently. One of his arms just managed to graze her when the glitch caused his limbs to flail. It still knocked her down. It still left a scratch across her cheek. She and the rest of humanity were so fragile, so utterly and terrifyingly fragile. And if he'd gone after her directly…

No, he wasn't going to think about that. He wouldn't do such a thing on purpose and he was fixed now so he shouldn't glitch like that ever again. Besides, thinking about all the horrible possibilities was not the best thing to do first thing in the morning.

Dropping down from the ceiling into a chain beside her, he managed to startle Pleakley into shouting in response to the experiment's unexpected arrival. This caused Lilo to smile and Jumba to chuckle in amusement. Stitch couldn't help grinning himself as the Plorgonarian tried to calm back down. Perhaps not as satisfying in some ways as smashing the table to splinters, tossing the dishes against the wall to break them into ceramic fragments, and crushing the cereal into a soggy mess, but startling Pleakley was more acceptable than most of his destructive desires. Though it would have been nice to see the wood cracking and to hear the glass shattering…

"Morning, Stitch," Lilo greeted. "Sleep well?"

"Ih," he nodded, reaching over for his bowl of cereal that was already waiting for him.

Still glaring at him over the minor scare, Pleakley grumbled, "Apparently the little monster was overly tired from his efforts to drive us all crazy and stayed in bed for a while."

"Or perhaps Little Girl and 626 was busy reading new book of aesthetic repairs failing after Bigger Girl said for you to be sleeping?" suggested Jumba, glancing up briefly from his blueprints.

"I've been waiting forever for the sequel to 'Plastic Surgery Gone Wrong.' It has a whole chapter on noses," she pointed out. "And Stitch liked the pictures of the one guy who underwent liposuction. The one where they vacuumed out all the fat, but his skin was still really loose and dangling off him like he was wearing an oversized shirt."

The blue-furred experiment chuckled, "Ih. Skin flappy. Like flag."

Somehow Pleakley's complexion turned more green than yellow and he pushed away what remained of his breakfast with a whispered, "I think I just lost my appetite."

"Oketaka," shrugged Stitch, snatching up the Plorgonarian's bowl and dumped the contents into his open mouth.

"That doesn't mean you can steal it," he complained.

"It go to waste otherwise," pointed out Jumba.

Rolling his eye, Pleakley muttered, "Fine. Help yourself." As Stitch proceeded to drag his tongue across the dish in order to enjoy every tasty morsel, he asked, "Since you don't have hula class today or school, what's your plan for the day, Lilo?"

The experiment stopped eating long enough to turn towards the girl. While hula class was usually short enough to tolerate and could even be fun if he was allowed to watch or participate, school was just a boring distraction from his time with Lilo. Far too many days a week for far too many hours in his opinion, she was gone and he was stuck trying to entertain himself until her return. Granted, he spent some of that time visiting Angel sometimes. And, yes, Lilo brought him for Show and Tell once and he got to attend her class long enough to draw a diagram of the Turo system to show off before he accidentally caused the front desk to split in half while moving it. Now he wasn't allowed near the school. Honestly, there were times he wished she didn't have to go. It wasn't like he or Jumba couldn't teach her anything she might need to know about math and science. They could definitely teach her more than the instructor with the fragile furniture and no knowledge of the mechanics of long-distance space travel. Of course, she still needed someone for the boring stuff like Earth history since Pleakley wasn't quite as well-informed on those topics as he might believe. So Stitch was forced to admit school was something that would have to be endured. That didn't mean he didn't strongly prefer the time Lilo was free to spend with him.

"David told me that he would take me and Stitch surfing later and I was thinking we could check on Yin, Yang, and Cannonball while we're there," the girl stated, taking another bite of her cereal. "They're predicting some _huge_ waves today, even without the help of 520."

Nani and David were complicated in Stitch's opinion. The young man was part of the ohana, there was no doubt about that. The fire twirling individual spent movie nights with them, played with Lilo in his spare time, and went out on dates and not-dates with the older girl. Everyone knew they would eventually get married. And by "everyone," he meant every human, alien, and experiment on the island. It wouldn't be that surprising if even Cobra Bubbles was quietly wondering when they would just hurry up. Of course, even after meeting Angel, Stitch couldn't claim to truly understand romance or love. And just asking why Nani didn't just marry David and have him move into the house would probably spark the older girl's temper or just leave her claiming it was complicated.

"That sounds like fun," remarked Pleakley. "After I finish repairing your hula outfit, there was a fascinating Earth tradition I'm planning to investigate in greater detail. Are you familiar with this Daylight Savings Time concept?"

Chuckling slightly, Lilo answered, "Sort of. It probably isn't what you think it is."

"Tried to tell him that already, but he isn't to be listening to me," muttered Jumba.

"And I told you I know what I'm doing. Who's the Earth expert here?"

Shaking her head in amusement, the girl remarked, "Well, have fun anyway and mahalo about my hula outfit. I'll try to change clothes after class the next time Stitch and I re-enact a scene from the Wasp Mummy movies."

"Well, I would certainly appreciate it. It isn't that easy getting mud out and fixing the torn out sections," commented Pleakley. "Rolling down the hill to 'escape from the undead insect menace' seems to do a lot of damage when you hit the ditch at the bottom apparently."

Smiling sheepishly, Lilo nodded and turned towards the blue-furred experiment, "Come on, Stitch. We have some waves to catch and David's probably already waiting."

Gulping down what remained of the cereal in his own bowl, Stitch leapt out of the chair and scurried over to her excitedly. He knew that Jumba was still mildly baffled by the experiment's fascination and enjoyment of surfing. After all, it was an entire activity that relied on water and the traits that made him practically indestructible also made him sink like a rock. Stitch knew exactly how vulnerable to drowning he was and possessed a perfectly-understandable dread of the hazardous material whenever he encountered more than could be contained in a water balloon. But surfing was just too much fun. Everything about it was exciting and he couldn't resist it. Part of it might even be _because_ of the danger of trying, just like humans would engage in skydiving even if they weren't durable enough for the impact if something went wrong. Every single time he climbed on a surfboard, he ran the risk of drowning and yet it was too much fun to stay on the shore. Besides, Stitch trusted Lilo and David to help him if he was knocked off the board and his balance was good enough to keep him on most of the time anyway.

"Ih," he grinned at her. "We surf now."

* * *

To say that Dr. Jacques von Hamsterviel was unhappy sitting in his mostly-empty cell would be an understatement. His various attempts at galactic domination had been thwarted by a child of a primitive species and the genetic experiment that once represented the highest achievement of the Galaxy Defense Industries in general and Dr. Jumba Jookiba specifically. Okay, 626 was probably still the greatest creation of Jumba since 627 and Leroy unfortunately each possessed a crippling flaw that left them useless. That did little to improve the rodent-like being's mood since he still didn't like losing to something that should have been his weapon. If only he waited a little longer to turn Jumba over to the Federation Council, he might have grabbed the little monster for himself before the little Earth girl could ruin him. Circumstances forced his hand however and thus he lost the opportunity to possess the experiments for his own purposes.

While his continued defeat by the two individuals and their companions was certainly a large part of his state of frustration, along with being imprisoned, it was not the only contributing factor. He'd spent the last three years in confinement after all, depending on the incompetent Gantu to fulfill the mission to gain the experiments and hiding the elaborate technology that kept him connected to the rest of the galaxy. The same technology, he might add, that kept his prison sentence from being that problematic to his goals. Jail was not enough to stop his efforts to take over. Unfortunately, his short-lived victory to rule over everyone resulted in him back in prison, but with some notable and frustrating changes. His useless lackey was turned into an ally for the little Earth girl and the experiment and he'd regained his old role as Captain of the Galactic Armada. And that meant the grey-skinned buffoon spilt all Hamsterviel's secrets to the Federation Council, including all of his modifications to his last prison cell. Thus, he was far more trapped than ever before.

Not one to give up easily, the white-furred being was in the process of reconstructing his old systems. He might not be the one who could play with genes to create creatures who possessed the power to produce fireballs, ice, electricity, ear-piercing shrieks, black holes, or amazing sandwiches, but he did attend the Evil Genius University with Jumba. He was an expert at arranging shady business deals for funds to make such experiments possible and discretely converting technology to more suitable purposes, including turning the security system of a prison cell into a workable lair. And if he could do it once, he could do it again.

Placing the final red wire in the right spot on his creation and completing the connection, the small intergalactic communicator produced a soft beep and came online. Hamsterviel smirked and glanced out the clear side of his cell to ensure that the guards were still absent. This particular prison block was mostly filled with Leroy clones that were now essentially useless unless music was playing and didn't do much even then. Since he was the only one who could cause trouble in this corner of the prison, the guards tended to check on him more often than he liked and definitely slowed down his progress. At the moment, however, he seemed to be alone.

Dialing the device up, Hamsterviel sent out an inquiry towards all of his old contacts or help. Just because Gantu turned against him didn't mean that everyone abandoned him. Business associates, made over the twenty-five years he worked with Jumba, might be willing to help him for the right price. If he found someone still willing to speak to him while he rested in prison, the white-furred being might be able to wrangle a deal to have them break him out.

In a surprisingly short amount of time, the object beeped and a voice greeted, "Dr. Hamsterwheel, it has been quite some time."

"Hamster_viel_," he snapped automatically. "My name is Hamster_viel_."

As soon as the words left his mouth, the rodent-like entity realized exactly who'd responded to his request for help. Her image was on screen, staring at him intently. The basic description for her and her species was similar to that of the Earth insect, a praying mantis. Her head was certainly the appropriate triangular shape and the large yellow-green eyes with the tiny pupils matched. Her twin antennas curled above her head on either side of a gold crown. A white cape was tied around her small neck, but the rest of her body wasn't visible on the small screen. Still, the red coloration was enough to identify which member of the species he was addressing, even if the crown didn't prove it.

"Queen Soltus, what a pleasant surprise," he smiled, trying to regain any good favor he might have lost with his previous outburst. "How are things in your end of the galaxy?"

"The Swarm progresses, taking two new worlds since last we spoke," she replied. "Am I correct in my understanding that you require assistance?"

"Yes," Hamsterviel acknowledged. "Perhaps someone with as much smart-like smartness as you might be willing to spare a few of your undefeatable warriors to help break my trapped person out of this imprisoning prison?"

If she agreed to such a request, this might be the ideal way to deal with the situation. The Entolyterians, or "the Swarm," were a species that originally occupied a pleasant-enough planet called Entolytera, but now ruled over dozens of worlds. Neither they nor their conquered worlds were part of the United Galactic Federation. They possessed no interest in joining and obeying the laws that governed the collection of systems, but they also did not wish to draw the anger of the Untied Galactic Federation by starting a war with them. _Yet_. But battles and taking over other worlds was a large portion of the species' purpose and there were more than enough worlds out there who didn't have that protection. The war-like tendencies of the Swarm was why they served as one of his "shady business deals" in the past. The promise of genetic experiments designed for destruction was a tempting offer for a people based on conquering other worlds. That was also why they would be helpful for breaking him out of his cell. If that brainless fish-face, Gantu, could devise a successful breakout before switching sides, then a small team of highly-trained warriors should have no trouble with it.

"I might be able to arrange something similar if it becomes necessary," she responded. "But first, I must ask you something important. You promised us that your most talented scientist was just about to complete his greatest work, our perfect living weapon that our funding allowed to be created. It is peculiar that, just before your promised delivery, your United Galactic Federation discovered the project and arrested the scientist. The timing seemed a little too perfect at preventing the agreed upon deal."

Hamsterviel struggled not to react to her subtle accusation. It was true that the timing of Jumba's arrest was too ideal to just be luck. He alerted the authorities in the hopes that it would dissolve the contract with Queen Soltus, allowing him to gain control of the 625 other experiments for his own galactic domination. A double betrayal that would lead to Hamsterviel ruling the federation with a deadly force of genetic living weapons. Even if Jumba's possessions, including the experiment pods, were confiscated by the authorities during the arrest, he could still get them with a bribe or two. It all came apart when 626 escaped to Earth, the scientist was freed to pursue him, and the little girl became involved, however.

"It was troubling," he admitted carefully. "But the arrest _did_ make it impossible to deliver the experiments for your war-like wars against other planets. There was nothing I could do about it."

"But he is no longer in prison," she pointed out sharply. "Nor is he in trouble with the law any longer, from what I understand. Would you like to explain why I still lack the promised experiments, even though you possessed time to provide them before your own arrest?"

Her glare was a little unnerving, especially since she was accusing him of breaking the deal and wasn't wrong about her accusations. But he still needed her help, so Hamsterviel needed to keep on her good side at least until he was free. That meant smoothing out the whole issue of the failed delivery of the experiments they funded.

"I would have brought you them, but it was already too late. Their destructive programming turned into a failing failure due to outside influences. They were rendered utterly useless for their original purpose, even if I could procure them for you at this time."

"I was under the impression that was impossible," commented the insectoid queen. "From what you claimed, they were programmed solely with destructive and aggressive behavior that could not be altered. You promised that all we would need to do would be to turn loose one of the later creations on a populated planet and nothing would stop their attack. Did you overestimate the effectiveness of the experiments? Perhaps I paid too much."

Feeling rather indignant, even if they were mostly Jumba's work, Hamsterviel glared at her slightly, "It is not because of some mistake on our part. They were perfectly perfect until that annoying little Earth girl got involved. There is something about her that allows her to wander around, ruining everything with her ruining-ness. The human girl with the name of Lilo Pelekai. That one. She is a devious and sneaky child. Somehow she ruins them. I don't know how she does it, but she destroys their programming."

Queen Soltus tilted her head slightly, "How curious. Is that a species trait?"

"No, just that one little girl. If she encounters a genetic experiment, then they become loyal to her and no longer follow their destructive programming to cause destruction."

"Can it be replicated?"

Hamsterviel blinked in confusion, staring at the small screen as he tried to decipher her meaning. He didn't expect her to ask a question at that point.

"Can what be replicated?" he asked finally.

"However that young human is able to override the experiments' programming," she clarified. "Can it be replicated? Can we use the same method in order to take over other living weapons for our use? Would it be possible to determine how this 'Lilo Pelekai' gets past the basic programming and to do the same thing ourselves?"

"I… don't know. I never really considered it," he admitted. "I don't know how she does it, so I don't know if we could replicate the resulting results."

"While a genetically-engineered weapon might be useful, the ability to acquire larger numbers and control them is a far more valuable commodity. If we can learn how she gained their loyalty when the experiments should not have the capability to ignore their programming, we should be able to do the same thing. We can regain command of the experiments you promised and others that we might find on other planets. We must learn this skill."

The white-furred prisoner began to feel a shadow of doubt creeping up his spine. This conversation was not going how he'd expected or wanted it to. Somehow he knew his possible escape was slipping through his fingers.

"That is all fine and dandy, but we were discussing how you will be breaking me out of here," he reminded.

"No, we were discussing how you failed to provide the promised experiments. And how we already paid for them," she said sharply. "You owe the Swarm and there is a high cost associated with such a debt." She paused briefly, glancing at something off-screen, before continuing, "Still, this news about the intriguing human child might be worth something. It will require further investigation. If we determine that she and her capabilities are as valuable as I suspect them to be, we shall consider your debt paid. Otherwise, I would suggest you spend your time in that cell contemplating ways to endear yourself to the Swarm so that you do not become one of our targets for conquer."

With that final ominous warning, the screen went black and Hamsterviel was left staring at it in shock. He wasn't quite certain what his actions might lead to, but he suspected one thing.

"I'm not getting out of here, am I?" he asked no one in particular.

**Yeah, don't expect another update for quite some time. I mostly had this already written up and then got distracted. So I figured I'd post it. Lots of technical stuff about how Stitch does what he can do, but I hope that doesn't put you off too much. I found most of it from a variety of sources, ranging from the movies and cartoons to websites to an ancient copy of "Disney Adventure Magazine." Anything else, I made up based on that info and guesses. The Entolyterians are my creation. You'll be seeing more of them eventually.**

**As for the title, I know that the most common meaning for the word "aloha" is "hello" and "good-bye," but there's another meaning too. Specifically, it is referenced quite a bit in "Leroy and Stitch." They keep talking about "the aloha you give always comes back to you." The third meaning for the word would be "love or affection." That's the meaning that this story's title is referencing. Because there is a great deal of love involved.**

**Not all love is romantic love. There's familial love, the love between dear friends, and unconditional love. And I don't care what type of pairing you consider for these characters. There is no way you can deny the love displayed in this ohana.**

**Remember, reviews are always appreciated. Even if updates will be insanely slow (WAY too many stories going at once), I still read reviews and will answer questions if necessary. Thanks.**


	2. Sandcastles and Kidnapping

**Yeah, updates aren't always going to be this quick. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't enjoy the story regardless. Just be prepared for long waits. Thanks for all the reviews so far. I appreciate the feedback.**

She was a soldier. A guard. An Orange. She fulfilled the duty that the coloration of her exoskeleton assigned her. She was a loyal member of the Swarm. And she would obey any command that the great and glorious Queen Soltus, the only one who deserved a name and individuality, might provide. She would do it without question, serving as an obedient piece of the whole.

Today, she and two other Oranges were going on a stealth-based retrieval mission on a primitive, but hostile planet. An image of the target was obtained from the files of the United Galactic Federation, though most of the available information was left alone to avoid complications. Bringing the attention to the Swarm was not a smart idea, so meddling in their files would be kept to a minimum. The coordinates were quickly typed into the computer system of the ship: Quadrant 17, Sector 005, Area 51.

The planet, from what the Orange could observe as their spacecraft drew near, seemed to consist of a mostly water-covered surface with large chunks of land scattered across. Their target, however, should be located on a very small piece of land created by volcanic activity along with a handful of other islands. That would save time since there would be a limit on the area the target could hide. And while the primitive life-forms were unaware of life on other planets, those on the island seemed particular adept at ignoring the presence of extraterrestrials and that would further simplify the mission. The minor issue of the suspected guard on the target would be dealt with if necessary, but the Orange held high hopes that they would succeed and the mission would greatly benefit the Swarm.

But, as she examined the image of a small and squishy biped that they were intending to capture for their queen, she wondered uneasily if the command to kidnap a child could be a mistake.

* * *

David, in Lilo's opinion, was the best person for Nani to marry if a certain big sister would ever hurry up about it. He was already practically ohana, he and Nani clearly liked each other, and she enjoyed spending time with him whenever he managed not to be too busy. Furthermore, he barely blinked at the more unique parts of the ohana. It didn't matter if Jumba was inventing at the kitchen table Pleakley was trying on a new dress, one of the hundreds of cousins were visiting, or Stitch was climbing across the ceiling. David just shrugged and went along with it. And as a final vote in his favor, he was loads of fun when it came to surfing.

It was always smart for them to surf in a group, so it was probably a great thing that it was more fun to surf with friends than alone anyway. Lilo knew she was getting better at controlling her surfboard over the years and could probably enter some of the contests as she got older, but she also knew that she would never ride alone because it wouldn't be fair. She or David would almost always have Stitch with them.

For a genetic experiment with the buoyancy of a brick, he was surprisingly talented on a surfboard. He was also fairly experienced at staying on the floating object even after a spectacular wipeout. But none of them would ever forget that deep water was something the nearly indestructible experiment couldn't survive. Someone always rode with him or stayed right next to Stitch just in case. And if he wanted to show off on his own, Lilo would ask some of the aquatic cousins to help watch.

After all, Stitch did everything in his power to keep her safe from harm. It was only fair that she did her best to return the favor when given the chance.

Now, coated in salt and sand from a day at the beach, she and Stitch proceeded to construct a small sandcastle on top of the partially-buried David. At least, it was originally a _small_ sandcastle. As she worked on the spaceship landing pad near David's left ear, Stitch was working on the invading army of sand zombies with a gleeful grin across his face. Lilo knew getting the smell of ocean out of his fur would be a nightmare due to his dislike and fear of baths, but a fun day at the beach was worth it.

"Cobra Bubbles visited not too long ago," she chatted casually, shaping the sand with her hands. "He couldn't say too much because of all the classified stuff he isn't supposed to do or know about because he's retired from that, but he really isn't completely retired. But I think he was trying to offer me a job or a class or something about their secret group that deals with aliens. He said they mostly recruit people from jobs with three initials, like the FBI or CIA."

"That sounds exciting," David commented as Stitch covered his toes with a sand sculpture of a miniature catapult.

"It might be fun," she nodded. "Or really boring. Cobra also said I have to wait a few years though. Even if I know more about aliens than most of their recruits, he thinks it might be bad idea for a little kid to join. It'll probably destroy all their self-esteem and leave them feeling vulnerable. So I guess I'll have to wait until I'm thirteen."

"At least you have something to look forward to," the young man said. "Have you talked to Nani about this?"

"Naga," replied Stitch, dusting off some of the sand.

Lilo admitted, "Not yet. There's still loads of time."

"Well, make sure you give her plenty of time to think about it and get used to the idea," David advised, craning his head as much as possible to look at the girl over the growing sand creations. "You know she worries."

Nodding, the dark-haired child shifted her attention to the miniature version of a mad scientist tower for the Frankenstein's Creature she'd just finished. She knew Nani worried. Her sister worried too much sometimes in her opinion. Lilo knew Cobra Bubbles arranged things so the Child Service people could never take her away from Nani. She knew Hamsterviel was in space jail. And she had Stitch to keep her safe from anything else they might run into. She was probably the safest girl on the whole island.

"Lilo," Stitch called, pointing excitedly at the leader of his army of sand zombies.

Leaning in close to the constructed figure, she could see sections of "skin" peeling off and the zombie was carrying his head under his arm. The way she could tell that this sand sculpture was the leader was due to the large hat placed on the decapitated head in the form of a seashell.

"Cool," she grinned as her friend released an evil cackle.

"Shouldn't there be a graveyard for the zombies to come from?" asked David.

"Oh, yeah," said Lilo. "We almost forgot. Maybe we should add one near your knees."

"Naga," Stitch shook his head. "Armpit."

The girl nodded, "Perfect."

* * *

While the scent of sea water was a scent he'd grown extremely used to since his sensitive nose could detect it from most locations on the island and he could now ignore it in favor of more informative smells most of the time, getting some of the ocean soaked into his fur left behind a strong scent that wouldn't leave his nose alone. It was just too close to ignore. He could barely smell Lilo and she was walking beside him. Probably the only reason he could pick up her scent at all at the moment was because it was one of the most familiar and important ones he knew. Even through the overwhelming aroma of salt water in his fur, he knew she smelled like warm sand, cool sea breezes, a fruity shampoo and a duller soap, sugary cereal from breakfast, cheap detergent and cotton from the dress she pulled over her swimsuit, and a warm and comforting scent that was unique to Lilo and pure ohana. He would always recognize her, even when his nose was almost completely swamped by his own salt-water-encrusted fur masking every other scent on the island. Honestly, even if it meant he couldn't smell almost anything else at the moment, he'd had fun on the beach and it was worth it. Besides, it wouldn't take long to get it cleared off.

He still hated baths. He hated and, to be perfectly honest, feared them. Purposefully sitting in a container as the choking substance tried to rise up and swallow him below the depths… Stitch couldn't see why Nani found the things relaxing.

But after hundreds of battles about the necessity remaining clean, countless times where someone would try dragging him to the bathroom while he climbed every surface possible to avoid such a thing, and Lilo promising repeatedly she would never let him drown, a compromise was reached. He wouldn't take baths, but he would take a shower. While he still wasn't perfectly comfortable with the idea, the water level never rose above his feet and it was no more disturbing than being caught in a rainstorm. He also used a shampoo that smelled the least like fruit, flowers, or various chemicals that the human nose couldn't detect (again, he couldn't figure out how Nani could enjoy her scented bubble baths). At least the new arrangements meant he would be clean with minimal suffering for everyone.

"So we'll stop by Slush's snowcone stand for a snack before heading back home," Lilo remarked casually as they left the beach, the girl pausing briefly to take a picture of a tourist who was strangely wearing socks with his sandals. "That way, we can check on him and Dupe."

"Oketaka," he nodded, grinning.

She hesitated just a moment before adopting her own grin and said, "Hey, why don't we make it a race? Last one there has to help Pleakley clean the living room."

"Goobaja," he laughed in agreement before taking off.

Stitch knew rolling would be easier, but part of the fun of a race was the actual running. Neither he nor Lilo possessed very long legs, but using his front limbs to help run gave him a slight advantage. He ran, scrambling along the walls of buildings or scurrying under people if he encountered an obstacle. The streets were rarely busy with vehicles, but Stitch keeps his ears pricked just in case a car approaches the running and laughing girl who was doing her best to beat him to their goal. Even during a race across the small town, he paid close attention to anything that might accidentally cause her harm. Just because he could easily withstand a large amount of metal smacking into him didn't mean that Lilo could. Of course, she was smart enough not to run in the road when there was traffic, but it didn't hurt anyone for him to pay attention for trouble anyway.

The blue experiment was ahead of her as his mind went over possibilities, cackling to himself while occasionally glancing backwards to where the girl was following. Of course, if a car were to crash somewhere that wouldn't threaten anyone (including the driver), that would be entertaining. Say, for example, if a certain genetic mutant experimentation were to grab several thousand pounds of metal, glass, and rubber tires off the road and swing it into the nearby brick and glass structure with enough force to both crumple the vehicle and shatter the building. He could already picture it. Metal warping, glass cracking and splintering into shards that would quickly sprinkle across the asphalt and concrete, bricks tumbling, and wonderful crashes that would ring in his ears as broken pieces continued to fall long after the initial impact. Screams and shouts from witnesses would add to the noise and, if he did everything perfectly, perhaps a telephone pole could be knocked over so that the wires would be ripped free and sparking electricity along the ground. He could practically feel the metal framework being sliced by his claws, glass shards bouncing off his fur, and crushing brick fragments beneath his steps. His mind was already making the necessary calculation required to know the ideal force, angles, and timing required in order to produce the greatest level of destructive chaos with the present resources. He wouldn't ever do it because Lilo would disapprove and it would be wrong, but the desire remained.

The brief daydream of destruction was abruptly shoved away by a shriek. Other yells of surprise and shock quickly followed, but Stitch's full attention was on the initial sound because it was a noise that haunted his nightmares. It was the sound of Lilo in trouble.

"Lilo?" he responded, their race forgotten.

No matter how fast his reflexes might be, he only managed to catch a glimpse of the girl as he spun around. Something tall and orange was pulling her into a gap between of two buildings. People, some locals and some tourists, were equally drawn by her shriek and were pointing towards the spot she was snatched away. Stitch barely noticed their reactions. All that mattered was that Lilo was in trouble.

The small blue figure sprinted, plowing straight through any obstacle in his way. He ignored the yelps of confusion and annoyance as he knocked people off their feet with his desperate attempt to follow where she vanished. As he reached the narrow gap between buildings, not even large enough to be considered an alleyway, Stitch still couldn't see her. Almost any scent he might pick up was still masked by the salt water crusted on his fur. All he had left to follow was the annoyed yells and calls for help that were quickly growing fainter as the distance between him and Lilo increased.

* * *

Experiment 613 wasn't the most powerful of Jumba's creations. Nor did the light blue creature have the busiest or most difficult role in his one true place. The lemur-like being spent most of his days relaxing in the small little house built for him or perched on a rooftop, keeping an eye out for trouble. True, he was supposed to serve as an alien invasion alarm that someone could used to alert people, but he saw no problem with adding his voice when a different disaster was occurring. There could never be too many fire alarms, tsunami warnings, and such. As long as he used a slightly different sound for each one (and kept the volume at a safe level), it seemed like a good strategy to him.

Yaarp stared out at the surrounding area, perfectly content with his life. He and his cousins might not be doing exactly what they were built to do, but that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. It was more fun to have a big ohana. He liked his one true place. And even if he was created for evil, that didn't mean he had to stay evil. Even Jumba wasn't really that evil.

Movement caught his eye, pulling the creature's attention to a particular section of the island. The size and color of the movement was what really held his focus. Humans tended to be in similar colors and the more vibrant experiments on the island tended to be smaller. A tall, orange shape was moving swiftly towards the tree line.

Yaarp bounced up to the highest point on the building he was perched on, peering at the scene. The orange shape was carrying something. Then, he saw a blue figure further back, clearly trying to follow the escaping orange thing. Yaarp recognized Stitch. He also figured out the orange figure was probably an alien. And if Stitch was chasing the alien, his movements clearly desperate even at that distance, then it wasn't a friend.

He knew he was supposed to wait for someone to let him know that a possible alien arrival was an enemy. After all, it would be embarrassing for everyone if he started blaring out a warning when it turned out to be just Gantu or someone visiting. But Yaarp's instincts were telling him that something was wrong and that the orange figure disappearing into the foliage was an enemy.

Drawing himself to his full height by perching on his tail and uncurling the horn on his head, Yaarp performed his important responsibility. While taking care not to cause any damage to nearby structures or the hearing of the closest humans, he blared out an alarm to warn everyone of the presence of hostile aliens.

* * *

"Let me go," Lilo shouted, struggling in the grip of her captor. "Stitch, help!"

Normally, the girl would be impressed by the fact she was dealing with a giant bug person. A giant, orange, praying mantis with yellow eyes was holding her tightly with her pincher-like arms and carrying her through the forest at a rather quick pace. It was the kidnapping that was ruining the moment. She'd simply been grabbed off the street by the insect person.

"Let go," she yelled, kicking at the solid exoskeleton of her captor. "I'm warning you. You're going to be sorry."

"Silence, human," the orange praying mantis creature ordered. Lilo quickly determined that her captor was a girl based on the voice. "The queen demands we bring you back for study."

"If your queen turns out to be a wasp mummy, you should know I've seen almost every movie. I know how to defeat the wasp mummies without being eaten or turned into one of your worker drones."

"Silence," she repeated, a slight hint of clicking in her voice. "Your struggles and noise will not aid you. We will soon reach the ship and we shall not be distracted or detained."

Lilo quickly changed her thought process from monsters to aliens. On the one hand, that was mildly comforting since she had plenty of experience dealing with aliens from other planets. On the other, it was a lot harder to escape from someone after they had you on their spaceship and off the planet.

"Aggaba!" Stitch's voice called out from somewhere behind them. "Lilo!"

"Stitch," the girl shouted back. "Please help!"

Lush plants blocked her from seeing if her best friend was catching up. But she knew he was still following. She trusted him. She knew he would save her. He always would.

A loud blaring sound filled the air, making the girl look up in surprise. She knew that sound. On a bad day, it could deafen anyone within range and knock them flying. On a good day, it was simply a friendly noise from one of the many cousins who lived on the island.

"Yaarp?" Lilo muttered to herself before a grin spread across her face. Glancing up at her giant praying mantis captor, she said, "You're in big trouble now. Hear that alarm? Everyone on the whole island knows that there are evil aliens here now."

"Interesting. We were not informed that your species were taking measures concerning extraterrestrials," said the orange creature, not even slowing in here sprint through the forest. "It does not matter, however. We have take precautions to guarantee success."

"Lilo," shouted Stitch, the girl finally catching a glimpse of her loyal friend as he leapt over some of the vegetation.

Just as she was about to call out to him again, several plasma bursts struck him as someone fired from the undergrowth. The unexpected impacts knocked him flying back, at the very least stunning him for the moment. Two other orange praying mantis people, each one holding onto a spear-shaped object with a glowing green tip, instantly joined Lilo's captor from their hiding places.

The girl realized that it was an ambush set up in case someone tried to follow and rescue her. Just like Stitch did. They knew when they grabbed her that someone would try to save her and they'd been prepared. And if they were prepared, then they might actually stand a chance of taking her away.

"Stitch?" she yelled, hoping to see or hear some sign that he was still trying to follow her.

She knew that he could survive a hit from a plasma cannon (or whatever the spear-shaped blasters were), but that didn't stop the girl from worrying at least a little. She needed to know he was okay. And, because her struggles against the firm grip holding her wasn't working, she needed to know that he was still trying to rescue her. But she couldn't see him or hear him anymore and they kept moving farther away from where he landed.

It was like their first encounter with Gantu all over again, the last several years of her life stripped away until she was just a six year old girl once more. It didn't matter at the moment she'd spent three years facing impossible odds with her best friend in order to make sure over six hundred experiments didn't unleash complete chaos on the island. All that mattered was that she couldn't escape and was alone. She was captured by an alien she knew nothing about, about to be taken far away from her home. She might never see her ohana again. None of them. Her sister. Jumba and Pleakley. All the cousins. And Stitch. She wouldn't have Stitch. Lilo knew that, as long as she and Stitch were together, they could always find a way out of a problem. Together, they were unstoppable. But apart, they were more vulnerable.

"Stitch!" the little girl screamed desperately. "Please don't leave me."

She needed him. And he needed her. She didn't want to be alone again. She didn't want to lose her ohana.

She caught sight of their destination. While smaller than Jumba's ship, she recognized a spacecraft when she saw one. Even if this particular one was shaped vaguely like a dark-green dragonfly. Knowing that she was running out of time, Lilo fought against the insectoid-alien's grip in a final desperate attempt to stay on Earth. Even if she couldn't escape from all three of them, maybe she could at least delay them long enough for Stitch to recover and catch up. He would come, after all. She knew he would. He _had_ to.

"_Stitch!_" she called as she was carried inside.

* * *

Between trying to unscramble his thoughts after being hit by at least four direct hits by plasma blasts within seven seconds, Stitch called himself every insult he knew in English, Hawaiian, and Tantalog. He shouldn't have been caught off guard like that. If he could have smelled his surroundings properly, he would have realized there was an ambush. And while Yaarp's alarm would normally be helpful, it was drowning out a lot of the ambient noise and left him even less aware of his surroundings. He shouldn't have been hit, but he was too focused on the most important thing in his life to notice the kidnapper had friends.

Shaking his head in an effort to clear it as he climbed back to his feet, he forced away some of the more treacherous thoughts his racing mind was already producing. After all, based upon his previous speed and the rate at which he'd been gaining on them, it wouldn't be easy to catch back up. The amount of distance and time it would require for him to reach Lilo was quickly growing. And with each passing second, he could calculate the diminishing odds that he would be able…

"_Stitch!_"

All doubts and fears of failure were shoved aside as he ran towards the sound of her voice once again. He couldn't fail her. That single concept pounded through the genetic experiment. He couldn't fail her. He simply couldn't. He had to reach her. He had to get to Lilo before it was too late.

Tearing through the vegetation in his way, he tried to deny the sounds of a large engine starting. He ran, sprouting his extra arms in an attempt to increase his velocity in any way that he could. His limbs, designed for strength rather than pure speed, pushed him forward through the forest. He couldn't fail her. Even as he heard something large lifting off the ground, the blue figure ran after his lost friend.

Just as he reached the small clearing and caught sight of the spaceship that undoubtedly now contained a certain dark-haired little girl, Stitch realized that it was already too far off the ground for him to reach. His brain was already connecting various scenarios to make the attempt to reach the rising spacecraft, ranging from using a tree for a slingshot to trying to ride an explosion again. But just as quickly as the options formed in his head, they were discarded. Within seconds of seeing the dragonfly-shaped object heading for the stratosphere, Stitch knew he couldn't reach it. And by the time he reached the only other space-capable form of transportation on the island, it would be gone.

"Lilo," he whispered, horrified to realize that there was absolutely nothing he could do now to prevent her from disappearing from the planet. "_Naga_."

Gone. She was gone.

He stared up at the vanishing shape of the spaceship, his dark eyes unable to turn away from her last known location. His limbs, normally so easy for him to move, felt heavy and hung at his sides limply. He couldn't think; his rapid thoughts and efficient mind now seemed to be drowning in thick mud.

That was the perfect description for him. Drowning. Stitch felt like he was plummeting to the bottom of the ocean, helpless and lost. She couldn't be gone. She'd been there for almost his entire life. He'd always had Lilo. Not having her was just _wrong_. She was his ohana. The one place that he truly belonged was with her. She was his first and best friend, the one who taught him about life beyond his programming for destruction, and the most important person in his existence.

And he failed her. It was all his fault. He should have stayed closer to her when they were playing and racing across town. He should have paid closer attention to his surroundings. He should have been faster. He should have realized they set an ambush to slow him down. He should have saved her. He heard her calling, pleading for him to save her, and he failed.

Slumping down to the ground as limply as Lilo's doll, Scrump, Stitch didn't even try to push aside the feelings of guilt. He was Jumba's greatest creation, Experiment 626. He was unstoppable. He was able to escape from the entire Galactic Armada shortly after his creation. He was able to evade attempts at recapture on a small island for days before Gantu's arrival to Earth. He'd helped defeat and rehabilitate his cousins while keeping Hamsterviel's plans from coming to fruition. And yet, even when he was capable of so much, he couldn't accomplish the most important thing of all. He couldn't keep Lilo safe.

"Lilo," he said softly, his eyes dropping to his clawed limbs as the clenched and unclenched in frustrated helplessness. "Stitch sorry."

He couldn't just stay there, drowning in guilt and sorrow at failing her. There had to be a way to fix things. He couldn't give up. He had to find her.

Pulling his numb and heavy limbs back into motion, the blue experiment tried to focus on how he couldn't just give up on her. They managed to save Jumba when he was kidnapped, right? And she didn't give up on any of her ohana when Leroy and Hamsterviel were causing trouble, right? There had to be some way to find her and save her. And if she was even slightly harmed, Stitch would rip all of them apart. He would tear their limbs off, snapping each one into multiple pieces. He would crush them with chucks of their spacecraft, torn loose for the specific purpose of smashing the kidnappers. He would slice open their heads and…

Stitch grabbed the sides of his head and squeezed his eyes shut, trying to banish those thoughts. Anger and destructive programming wasn't always a good combination. But he wasn't like that. He was good now. _Good_. Lilo wouldn't want him to have those kinds of thoughts about someone, even people who kidnapped her. And those types of ideas were a little scary for him. If he considered how easy it would be to do that sort of destruction against someone, about how completely fragile they were in comparison to his strength, then it didn't take much imagination to realize how simple it would be to do something similar to people he cared about. How simple it would be to harm his ohana…

No, he was good. He was _good_. Lilo might be lost, but he would be good so that she wouldn't be disappointed with him when she got back. Because he _would_ get her back. If he had to search the entire universe and turn the United Galactic Federation upside down in the process, he would. But he would also make sure that he did what Lilo would want him to.

Not wanting to waste any more time that he could be using to search for her (and not completely certain that he should be alone while his anger and hurt over her disappearance fed into his original programming), Stitch took off toward home. If he wanted to save Lilo, he would need help and a spaceship of his own in which to follow.

**And now Lilo has been kidnapped by aliens and separated from Stitch. You really have to feel sorry.**

…**for the kidnappers. The Swarm really doesn't know what they've just done. Messing up the ohana never goes well. The consequences for their actions will be far beyond what they could ever predict.**

**Remember, the updates will likely be very slow. But feedback is always appreciated. Thanks for the reviews for the first chapter and I look forward to more for this one.**


End file.
